New $250 US Entry Fee May Hit Canadians and Foreign Workers

A new visa fee is coming for some travelers heading to the United States. Starting late 2025, many people living in Canada will need to pay an extra $250 USD to apply for a non-immigrant US visa.

This new rule is part of a law called the H.R.1 Act, signed on July 4. Officials haven’t confirmed the exact start date yet, but it is expected by the end of the year.

Who Will Pay the Fee?

The new Visa Integrity Fee will apply to non-immigrant visa applicants. This means people applying for US visitor, work, student, or exchange visas must pay the extra amount.

Visa types affected include:

• Tourist and business visas (B-1/B-2)
  
• Student visas (F or M)
  
• Work visas (H-1B, H-4)
  
• Exchange visas (J)
  

This fee will apply to citizens of countries that are not part of the Visa Waiver Program. This includes people from India, China, Pakistan, Nigeria, and Brazil, among others.

If you’re a permanent or temporary resident in Canada and your home country isn’t on the waiver list, you’ll need to pay this fee when applying for a visa.

How It Affects Canadian Citizens

Most Canadian citizens don’t need a visa to enter the US, so they won’t pay this fee in regular travel cases.

But some special categories of Canadian citizens do require US visas. These include:

• Work or student visas (like H-1B or F-1)
  
• Government or diplomatic travel (A, G, or NATO visas)
  
• Treaty traders and investors (E-1, E-2)
  
• Fiancé(e)s and spouses of US citizens (K-1, K-3)
  
• Individuals helping US law enforcement (S-5, S-6, S-7)
  

If you’re a Canadian in one of these categories, you’ll need to pay the $250 fee.

Who Will Not Pay the Fee?

The fee won’t apply to travelers from countries that don’t need a US visa. These include countries in the Visa Waiver Program like Australia, Japan, the UK, France, and South Korea.

These travelers use ESTA, not a visa, so the fee doesn’t apply.

Canadian citizens also don’t need ESTA to enter the US, which is why Canada isn’t on the waiver list.

Can You Get a Refund?

The new law says this fee won’t be waived or reduced. But there’s a small chance you might get it back.

To qualify for a refund, you must:

• Follow all visa rules
  
• Leave the US within five days of your visa’s end
  
• Or adjust your visa to permanent residency legally
  

Even then, you’ll need to apply for the refund through the Department of Homeland Security. There’s no word yet on how or when the refund process will begin.

Also, the fee will be adjusted for inflation, so it may increase each year.